The Story Behind the Deal: Dreamliner Perfects ‘The Art of Touring’
With the world of live entertainment brought to a standstill in 2020, companies that cater to touring and meet the
Ivy Griffith
With the world of live entertainment brought to a standstill in 2020, companies that cater to touring and meet the needs of entertainers on the road were struggling to find a way forward. Jeremy Maul, an expert in the industry, decided to strike out on his own and create Dreamliner Luxury Coaches. For Maul, setting up a system of luxury touring buses and waiting for the industry to return was a risky bet, but one he felt confident making. Now, as live entertainment venues across the country and world spring back to life, Dreamliner proves to be the great idea Maul knew it would be. CELEB talks with Maul about how he dreamed Dreamliner into existence, and what lies on the road ahead.
How Dreamliner Came to Be
Maul has over 20 years of experience in marketing, transportation, and business growth and development, making him uniquely poised to create his own wonderchild of a touring company. Having worked closely in the past with music giants like Jay Z, Neil Young, Chris Stapleton, Cher and others, Maul ascended the music industry and then joined Diamond Coach to focus on the hospitality side of touring. At Diamond, Maul was executive vice president. A wildly successful touring company, Diamond had over 120 employees, 70 buses, 1 plane, and booked over $11 million in tours by March 2019. But then the pandemic hit, and according to the American Bus Association, there was a 80 to 90 percent decrease in tour bus trips in 2020, costing over $5 billion to the industry.
Maul had been living near the Corona, Calif., location and traveling weekly to Nashville, TN. Diamond also owned a location in Toledo, IL. Once the pandemic struck, Diamond made the difficult decision to close their California location, leaving Maul and his family with a tough choice; do they relocate to Nashville, or find another path?
That is when he created Mojave Vans, a business dedicated to building luxury Sprinters for those embracing the open road lifestyle for work and play.
“When the pandemic hit, I saw the writing on the wall. I knew we needed to close the California office and my wife was not willing to move to Nashville. The decision not to move to Nashville led me to an idea for how we could keep all the employees from our West Coast office working, building luxury Sprinter vans for people to get out of the city and spend time exploring the United States,” Maul says.
With an office full of skilled industry professionals and the pandemic encouraging more people to move out of cities and explore the world around them, Maul knew it was time to start something new and wonderful—from vans to buses.
The Mojave Vans concept took off and they are pre-sold for the next four months. That concept spring-boarded into Dreamliner Luxury Coaches, aligning with the forward vision that the touring industry is about the hit an all time high.
“The opportunity for Dreamliner came up at a weird time. I was hesitant to get back into the music industry. It was very uncertain at the time the deal came to me. Most people I ran the idea by thought I was crazy. ‘You want to get into business with $10 million in debt and want to add another $22 million in debt over the next 2 years buying units?!’” explains the Dreamliner founder.
Maul continues, “I ended up taking a leap of faith with a great team at Caprice Capital, and here we are. We are building a state-of-the-art facility in Coachella, Calif., to hit the ground running going into the busiest tour season we have ever experienced.” Dreamliner is currently fully booked through the end of 2021; wildly impressive for a bet many considered a longshot. And Maul was able to hire an additional staff to take on the responsibilities of Dreamliner.
Dreamliner Buses
Dreamliner doesn’t just bring a team of industry experts, it brings some of the best luxury vehicles around. Now, Dreamliner is announcing the opening of their Coachella location in order to meet the increased demand of West Coast charter services. They’re starting with 15 Provost X3s and Maul adds they are, “fully constructed with no expense spared, and ready to hit the road. We also have an aggressive growth strategy that has us adding another 22 units to our fleet over the next 20 months.”
A 9,000 square-foot state-of-the-art facility will open in 2021 as well, elevating Dreamliner even more as they prepare to become the preeminent touring company on the West Coast.
Staying in a Dreamliner Luxury Coach is like spending the night in a boutique hotel. From Egyptian cotton sheets to designer décor, each coach prioritizes style and comfort. “At Dreamliner, it’s all about the experience, from where you sleep—your blankets, your sheets, your pillows, the custom Bose sound system—down to your coffee machine and the various fittings,” Maul says. With each vehicle costing up to $1 million, Dreamliner is ambitious, but Maul believes in pushing boundaries, taking inspiration from pioneers in the aviation and transportation industries.
The Dreamliner visionary continues, “We are the go anywhere, do anything answer for entertainers who want to travel on their own terms—without sacrificing any of the comforts of home. Each Dreamliner is built with the end user in mind and offers capability, comfort, craftsmanship, and convenience unmatched by your typical entertainer coaches.”
The Dreamliner Vision
Dreamliner is fully focused on customer needs and comfort, and has the experience to meet the West Coast’s demand as live venues open again and entertainers hit the road to recoup a year of staggering losses.
“Coming out of the pandemic, we feel like we are launching at the perfect time. All indicators point to an extreme amount of pent up demand for live events and shows. This is supported by data suggesting the next three years will be the busiest years the touring industry has ever seen,” Maul says.